François Fillon, sentenced in 2020 in the case of the fictitious jobs of his wife Penelope which plagued his 2017 presidential campaign, is the target of another investigation into the hiring of a parliamentary assistant, AFP learned on Friday (September 3rd). from a source close to the case.
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The investigation of the National Financial Prosecutor's Office (PNF), opened in 2017 for “
embezzlement of public funds
”, relates to the conditions of employment by the former Prime Minister of the writer Maël Renouard, between 2013 and 2015, as parliamentary assistant , said this source, confirming information from RTL. As revealed by the Buzzfeed site in 2017, Maël Renouard,
François Fillon's
“
pen
” when the latter was at Matignon, had been hired to write “
Faire
”, the presidential candidate's program book published in September 2015. This book sold 300,000 copies and earned Mr. Fillon, according to RTL, 550,000 euros.
The investigation, carried out by the Central Office for the Fight against Corruption and Financial and Tax Offenses (OCLCIFF), must determine whether the contract as parliamentary assistant to Maël Renouard, paid 38,000 euros out of public funds during this period, according to the radio, could be justified by this single mission.
The former prime minister was heard on this subject this year, according to the source familiar with the matter, and the procedure is still in the hands of the PNF.
"Pure artificial creation"
Magistrates can now decide to open a judicial investigation, summon François Fillon before the Paris Criminal Court or dismiss the investigation.
"
It is astounding to claim that a parliamentary collaborator cannot participate in the writing of a political book by a deputy,
" reacted to AFP his lawyer, Me Antonin Lévy.
"
This investigation is a pure artificial creation of the PNF which persists in keeping open empty procedures and leaves them opportunely a few weeks before the upcoming appeal trial
", he denounced.
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In the section of the fictitious jobs of his wife Penelope, François Fillon appealed against his conviction in June 2020 to five years in prison, including two closed, and will be retried in November.
